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Recipe for September

We welcome back Barry Cunliffe, who is our new unofficial Kirton News foodie! 

Kirton Flapjacks

I have been trying to find a low sugar flapjack recipe, but all seem to have some sugar in them, somewhere: Honey, Golden Syrup, Sugar, or Maple Syrup.  So I have been trying to find a simple recipe that excludes sugar in any additive form.

And I have discovered a simple, three ingredient flapjack!

Take 4 or 5 large or 5 or 6 small bananas.  Peel, then mash them in a large bowl.  Use a food processor, stick blender, or even (as I do) pre-chop them with a knife and then mash with a heavy fork.

Add to the bananas your fruit of choice. I have used homegrown gooseberries, home grown strawberries, and purchased grapes. cherries, purchased (tin of) mandarin oranges, etc.  Don’t worry about any juice from the tin entering the flapjack.  If it comes from a tin, tip it all in (make sure ‘tinned’ are only in juice or water, and not syrup, if watching diabetes or weight).  You want the juices to come out of fresh fruit, so consider cooking gooseberries and other solid fruit (2 or 3 minutes in the microwave works for me) to soften them up and break down the skins.  Only add sweetener if necessary and NO sugar.

Then add Large Rolled Oats and ‘ordinary’ Rolled Oats, about a 50:50 mix, until the mixture resembles a thick cement mix (sorry for the comparison, but that is what it looks like).  I mix them together with a heavy metal spoon and use a fold and chop action to mix it all together.  The mixture should be fairly uniform throughout.

I then put the mixture into four small foil trays supported in a larger solid tray.  A single large tray one would work, but is not as easy to store as four singles.  Press down and into the sides.

Put in a preheated oven, at 180 C (160 fan) for 30 to 40 minutes.  When ready the mixture should start to pull away from the sides, and be slightly browned at the edges.  Cool on a wire rack, still in their trays.  If you wish, mark out ‘pieces’ whilst still warm and soft.

They can be frozen, so put the foil tray cover on and label and date. You are only eating fruit and oats, so tuck in and I hope you enjoy it!

Best regards. Barry